Utility compartment for desks



April 24, 1962 c. w. HIRD 3,031,246

UTILITY COMPARTMENT FOR DESKS 1N V EN TOR. fAeE/Ycf W, f//eo April 24, 1962 c. w. HRD 3,031,246

UTILITY COMPARTMENT FOR DESKS Fi1d Aug. 31, 1960 s sheets-sheet 2 April 24, 1962 c. w. HIRD UTILITY COMPARTMENT FOR DESKS F11ed Aug. 51, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. (L HQE/vcr: W, /s//QD United States Patent 3,031,246 UTILITY COMPARTMENT FOR DESKS Clarence W. Hird, Youngstown, Ohio, assigner to The General Fireproofing Company, Youngstown, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed Aug. 31, 1960, Ser. No. 53,257 2 Claims. (Cl. S12-197) This invention relates to an improvement for increasing the storage capacity of modern style oce desks and the like.

The current trend of artistic design in desks is to avoid the time honored and practical pedestal type desk including one or more series of drawers thereby materially reducing the storage capacity of the new desks to the point where it is essential to provide some relatively spacious storage facilities compatible with relatively free standing at tops of oblong, rectangular, L shape, or split level patterns. Shallow push-pull drawers beneath the top are not considered a part of this general theme, and thus pose a problem intended to be solved by the present invention.

Accordingly, the object of the invention is to utilize the otherwise wasted space under a desk of the type above referred to by providing a storage compartment which not only conceals the contents, but is readily moved away from the position of access to a position of storage. In that connection, it is intended to make the compartment large enough to store objects which would not lit into the usual shallow drawer of a table top desk.

Another object of the invention is to provide an omnibus compartment which is pivotally supported from the underside of the desk top in a location where it will not interfere with the knees of the desk user, and yet provide a compartment which is easily moved from one position to another on supports which will not interfere with foot v movement under the desk.

With the above and other objects in view, which will more readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the invention consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter more fully described illustrated and claimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE l is a top plan View of an L-shaped desk showing the present storage compartment in dotted lines respectively in the closed and open or access positions.

FIGURE la is an elevation of the desk shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the side where the user is seated.

FIGURE 2 is a bottom plan view of the compartment shown in FIGS. l, 5, 6 and 7, and its suspension means.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken on the line 3-3- of FIG. 2.

FIGURE 4 is a detail vertical cross sectional view taken on the line l4--4 of FIG. 2.

FIGURE 5 is a full bottom plan view of the storage compartment.

FIGURE 6 is a Side elevation of the compartment shown in FIG. 5, partially broken away in section to illustrate structural details of the compartment structure.

FIGURE 7-is an elevation of the open access end of the compartment shown in FIG. 6.

Similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

Referring first to FIG. 1, it will be observed that the desk top T is shown by way of example of being of the L shape pattern and comprises sections 1, 2, disposed at right angles to each other. The outer edges of the top, that is, the edges normally disposed away from the seated user, have vertical front and side walls indicated at 1a and 2a Iand which serve as modesty panels (FIG. la).

The storage compartment designated generally as C may be positioned as shown in FIGS. l and 1ab relative to the top T and the user of the desk. That is to say, it is preferable to mount the compartment in a position where its open access end is concealed by the front panel 1a when not in use, and yet the entire compartment may be readily swung to the angular access position of FIG. l indicated partially by full and dotted lines.

The aforesaid storage compartment C is suspended from the bottom of the desk top by a pivot assembly indicated generally as 3 in FIG. 1, and shown in greater detail in FIGS. 1 and 2. Said compartment is also supported during its movement to and from a complete storage position to an access position upon an overhead rail R, shown more in detail in FIGS. 2 and 4. This rail carries the load of the box-like compartment C and relieves the pivot assembly from undue strain.

Referring rst to FIG. 3, it will be seen that the desk top T has the pivot assembly fitted to the underside thereof and said assembly includes a plate 4 provided with suitable screw receiving openings and a pivot post 5. This post is threaded at 6 and enters an opening in the top wall 7 of the compartment C. That is to say, one corner of the top wall 7 is provided with the aforesaid opening to receive the shank of the pivot post 5 whose threaded portion 6 in turn receives the outer `and inner clamping nuts and washers 8 and 9 to rotatably secure the compartment to the desk top.

rIhe compartment C, in addition to the top wall 7, is provided with side walls 10, 19, a bottom wall 11, and a rear wall 12, which is preferably rounded at one corner as indicated lat 13. One of the side walls 10 adjacent the curved portion 13 is provided with a hand grip opening 14 to facilitate movement of the compartment on the pivot assembly 3.

As will be observed from FIGS. 5, 6, and 7, the top Wall 7 is preferably reinforced by 7a, land the access end of all walls are folded inwardly, as indicated at 15, to reduce the risk of sharp edges.

The compartment C has its top wall 7 provided with a series of substantially Z-shaped hanger brackets H having the lower leg 16 thereof `attached to the outer surface of compartment top 7 while the bottom face of the opposite horizontal hanger leg 17 is provided with a nylon or similar lubricious traction member 1S.

As will be clear from FIGS. 2 and 4, these hangers H are so distributed and arranged on the compartment top that they are disposed adjacent opposite side walls 10, and also medially thereof, so that the hangers may travel freely on the rail R. This rail is struck on a radius whose center is the axis of the pivot assembly 3, and has its lower edge portion supported from the underside of the top T and in spaced relation thereto by the suspension brackets 19. These brackets are also of substantially Z-shaped formation, the upper flange 20 being secured to the underside of the desk top and the lower flange 21 having the arcuate rail welded thereto.

From the foregoing it will now be seen that the present invention provides for completely utilizing otherwise wasted space beneath the at top of a desk by providing a pivotally suspended box-like compartment which has an access end that may be alternately moved toward the inside face of a panel or away from such panel to enable articles to be placed in or removed therefrom. The invention not only includes a novel pivot assembly but practical means for supporting the compartment in its sliding movement from storage position to access position.

I claim:

l. In a desk, the combination including, a horizontal substantially L-shaped top, vertical panels depending from the outer side edge portion of lsaid desk, and a box-like utility compartment pivotally suspended at one top corner from the underside of said top substantially within the space defined by the included angles of said panels for horizontal swinging movement and having an opening accessible when facing away from one panel and to be closed against access when it faces toward said panel, an arcuate supporting rail, brackets carried by the bottom of the desk top and having portions spaced from said bottom to support the rail which is 180 in length, and a series of spaced hangers connected to the top of said compartment and slidably engaging the upper surface of said arcuate rail.

2. In a desk, the combination according to claim 1, wherein the rail is round in cross section and is engaged by anti-friction means on said hangers.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Johnson May 13, 1902 Seaman Mar. 1, 1904 Yaw Aug. 14, 1917 Sciannamea June 11, 1918 Moore Aug. 4, 1925 Center Nov. 7, 1944 Davidson Feb. 24, 1953 Abrahamson July 21, 1953 Luss July 17, 1956 

